Saturday, June 19, 2010

Daughter Lines, Enlarged



In the numberless numbers, the late night of their weight,

Lie philosopher puzzles, a jumble of man's talk

As if somebody listened.  Men strolled along porches

And taught, not what they knew, but what they yearned --

The head for the heart, waiting for love to appear.


After working the numbers, after accounts for the who who reads them,

I took a midnight walk, and, with you, conversed 

As if you were there.  We passed in the halogen halo of lamps 

And laughed, not at the wit, as at the fact that it was we,

We who walked as the night reared its ear.


.

2 comments:

  1. Love the tenor and atmosphere of this poem.

    "And taught, not what they knew, but what they yearned-"

    Wonderful line.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you, NP.

    My daughter responded well to the unenlarged version.

    Since I told her they were lines popping into my head after a late walk, she assumed they wouldn't just remain so abbreviated.

    I gave that personal 'existential jewel' a setting.

    ReplyDelete